A/N: okay, okay, I lied!! I said we'd be meeting the Irregulars this chapter, but unfornately "this chapter" was getting really, really long, so right now I'm posting the relatively short, kind of boring part that I chopped off the beginning of "this chapter". Sorry!! But you should know that the next one (when we will ACTUALLY be meeting the Irregulars) is already about halfway done, so you'll be getting that sometime relatively soon!!

again, sorry for lying to you :(

Disclaimer: I don't own Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, the Baker Street Irregulars, or London :)

When Jackie was determined to do something, there was absolutely nothing that could stop her. And today, she was not going to let the fact that she was a thirteen-year-old girl walking down some of the most dangerous streets in London all by herself stop her from finding Wiggins and the rest of the Baker Street Irregulars.

And yes, you heard that right: she was going to find the Baker Street Irregulars.

After pushing him out the window the night before, she had resolved to go find Wiggins and, well, not necessarily apologize, but see if she could just talk to him. He did seem like a rather interesting character, and Jackie had the feeling that if one got to know him enough, there was much more to him and his strange nature. Besides, just the chance to actually be able to talk to someone her own age was exciting to her. It wasn't that she disliked talking to Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson; it was just that she didn't really like listening to Watson and Holmes didn't really even like talking to her.

After walking for what seemed like hours (although in reality it was merely twenty minutes) and having no idea where exactly she was, Jackie came to the harsh realization that she was doing one of the stupidest things she had ever done.

Honestly, she didn't really know anything about the Baker Street Irregulars. She knew they were basically a bunch of street urchins, led by a shifty young boy named Wiggins. They more than likely resided somewhere around Baker Street, as suggested by their name, and because Wiggins turned right onto Baker Street after running out of the yard, they probably were somewhere towards the north. Also, being the fact that they lived on the streets, they probably didn't live in the nicest parts of town, further supporting the idea that they lived somewhere off northern Baker Street.

Jackie figured that she could have asked her uncle where she could find the Irregulars, because seeing as they helped him out on some of his cases, it was likely he would know where to find them. But for some reason, Jackie didn't really want to ask Sherlock Holmes. Maybe it was because she was uncomfortable asking. Or maybe it was just because she was too prideful. Really, both of those were legitimate reasons.

Regardless, Jackie hadn't asked for any help, and so she was on her own. And with every step she took, she was regretting her decision even more.

She had absolutely no idea where she was, as she had never been in this part of London before. And it didn't take very much deductive power to figure out that it wasn't the best part of London either. As she walked by, feeling very out of place in her clean blue dress and matching hair ribbon, women doing the laundry stopped to give her strange looks, dirty children dressed in rags stared up at her with wide eyes, and creepy old men who were more than likely drunk sat by the roadside and watched her walk by. She was beginning to feel very self-conscious and was debating whether or not to turn around and go back home when she a middle-aged woman suddenly came bursting out her front door.

"WHERE IS THAT BOY!" she cried, red-faced and fuming. "I swear, if he steals one more loaf of bread from me, he'll never see the end of it! I'll call the constable and have him dragged off to prison!"

"Helen, what is it now?" asked another woman, who was sitting two doors down carefully mending a pair of pants while two little children played quietly beside her.

"That awful boy," Helen spat, marching out into the street and looking around. "Two weeks ago he comes around here, looking pitiful and hungry… I should have known he was faking it, I should have known it, but I fell for it!"

"Oh Helen," the other woman clucked. "You've always been so charitable."

"Hmph, to the wrong people, apparently!" Helen, not finding the boy she was looking for, stomped back across the street and sat down on her doorstep. "I gave him a bit of bread, just once, and now he thinks he can come around whenever he like and just snatch it off my table! I can barely afford food for my own family, let alone him and his filthy clan of ragamuffins!"

"You mean that freckly lad, Helen?" asked a dark haired woman, leaning out an open window one flight above. "What's his name? Wiggins?"

"Wiggins! That's it!" exclaimed Helen, standing up triumphantly.

Jackie, who was standing against a building on the other side of the street, felt a surge of excitement and could barely even think straight. Wiggins? Honestly? How lucky she was! And now perhaps she was one step closer to finding the Baker Street Irregulars, all thanks to Wiggins and his criminal behavior.

"Wiggins, you say, ma'am?" Jackie repeated. The three women looked up suddenly, having not noticed Jackie standing there.

"Yes, is that something to you?" Helen snapped, glaring at the child. "What are you doing down here anyway?"

"Well, I was just looking for him myself," Jackie replied honestly.

"Looking for him!" cried the woman who was leaning out the window. "Do you know him? Tell him to get back here with our bread!"

"Oh, I barely know him," the girl said, thinking quickly. "I was actually hoping to find him, because he stole loads of food from my family too, and I need to get it all back right now, or else we might not have supper tonight!"

Although her dress might not have suited the part she was trying to play, apparently she still had retained enough of the pitiful, malnourished look of an orphan girl that she was able to convince the women.

"Oh, you poor child," Helen said, showing her soft side for the first time that day. "You really shouldn't be running around here alone, besides, we could all give you a bit of bread for your meal tonight."

"We would never let a child starve," the dark haired woman agreed.

"Oh, thank you so much," Jackie said with an innocent smile. "But really, I couldn't. You worked for you food, you deserve it. Now I just need to find that awful boy and get mine back."

The women, suddenly encouraged by Jackie's determination, all lit up and began chattering excitedly.

"That's the spirit!" cried Helen enthusiastically. "And when you find him, tell him to stop stealing things from everyone here in the neighborhood!"

"Best of luck to you, my dear," said the woman leaning out the window. "Wait, Eliza, didn't you say you saw him running around here earlier today?"

"I actually did," Eliza replied, setting down her mending for a moment and walking over to Helen and Jackie. "Those nasty little boys run through here all the time on their way to the great Mr. Holmes's apartment. Apparently they think they can actually help him or something, I don't know. I think he's such a dear to allow them to stay around, though."

The other women enthusiastically agreed. Jackie tried very hard not to laugh.

"But anyway, I believe they've recently been living in that old barn a few blocks north," Eliza continued. "The one right underneath Beckett's Deli. No one's been using it for years… I'm pretty sure that's where they are."

"Thank you so much for your help!" Jackie cried, her blue eyes shining brightly. "You've been so kind and helpful to me."

"Oh, isn't she a sweetheart," Helen said, beaming. "You do take care, dear, and make sure to give those boys a good talking to from all of us!"

"I sure will!" Jackie gave them a quick wave and then took off up the street. She didn't take any notice of the strange people staring at her as she went; she didn't care, because she was finally going to find the Baker Street Irregulars.